


How It Works

by Pondermoniums



Series: A/B/O Haikyuu One Shots [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alpha Kageyama Tobio, Alpha Kuroo Tetsurou, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Bonding, Childhood Friends, Knotting, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Omega Hinata Shouyou, Omega Kozume Kenma, Omega Verse, One Shot, Scent Kink, Summer Camp, Volleyball
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-16
Updated: 2016-07-16
Packaged: 2018-07-24 10:02:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7504105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pondermoniums/pseuds/Pondermoniums
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kenma and Tetsurou have known each other since day one, it feels like. They have grown together and changed together, but never drifting apart, and in a world where one's fate seems to be as drastic as the flip of a coin, this is quite a feat.</p><p>It is near to impossible to ignore the differences around him: alphas on one end with omegas on the other, and carefree betas in between. Volleyball has always been a unique escape and trap for Kenma, where such differences are either exploited or embraced. He is used to being unrecognizable, spending time with an alpha who behaves more like an indifferent beta, but at some point the coin must be tossed, and the only thing you can hope for is to play the game in your favor, no matter what side the coin lands on.</p>
            </blockquote>





	How It Works

**Author's Note:**

> In honor of finishing season 2 of Haikyuu! I needed to vent a little haha Hope you enjoy :)

Kenma heard the pebble _twack!_ on the glass of his window. He had heard the first nine pebbles, in fact, but the boss battle in his game had moved on to a second phase, and the game’s difficulty was not high enough to be a final form yet.

His shoulders lurched when a torrent of gravel cascaded over his window, the first of many attacks. Those too soon blended with the buzz and hum of his air conditioner—

“Hey hey hey!”

Kenma sighed. This was going to be an ordeal.

Finally standing and going to his window, he opened it and stepped aside for another handful of gravel to land on his desk. When he poked his head into the frame, Kuroo Tetsuro and Bokuto Kotaro stood with Akaashi Keiji in the street outside his house. It seemed the latter two had just arrived since somehow Kuroo and Bokuto were still doing their handshake despite Kuroo’s throwing rocks.

“You’re blocking traffic,” Kenma said quietly. Quiet compared to Bokuto, perhaps, but Kuroo annoyingly had keen hearing. While it allowed him to hear and enjoy the rare slights murmured under Kenma’s breath, it also made his privacy a moot endeavor.

“He doesn’t mind,” Kuroo said, stepping forward for the bicycle to ride past. “You’ve been playing that game since you bought it yesterday afternoon. You haven’t slept have you?”

“I thought we were the owls!” Bokuto beamed. “Come on, kitten, we’ve got a train to catch!”

“You’re a part of the team, Kenma,” Kuroo reminded. “That means attending summer camp.”

Kenma only stared. It was fortunate that his parents were not home. First Kuroo with rocks and now Bokuto with his voice, and then Kuroo again with his social responsibilities—

“Here,” Kuroo prompted. He smirked up at Kenma, whose eyes narrowed on the key he was handing off to Bokuto. He knew he had ten, maybe eleven, seconds to prepare a bag before Bokuto carried him back downstairs.

That was if he could catch him. Bokuto was strong and fast given his size, but Kenma was smaller, and more intelligent. He slipped right under those muscly arms when the silver owl arrived, grabbing his handheld, as much underwear as one hand could shove into his bag along with socks, went to his bathroom for his toothbrush, and then jumped lithely over his bed, desk, and around Bokuto for his necessary chargers. He arrived downstairs with a breathless owl, walking on his own.

The train was brief and uneventful; it was occupied with Bokuto’s chatter while taking them from one neighborhood to another, it felt like. The thirty minute walk between the station and the cluster of gyms and dormitory passed much the same: Kenma alternating between games on his handheld and his phone while Kuroo conversed with Akaashi and Bokuto, occasionally steering Kenma around a corner. It was not until a familiar voice sliced through his attention that he looked up.

“KOZUME-SAN! KENMA-KUN!” Hinata was bobbing up and down in the distance, although from this far away the flame of hair was actually leaping a little higher each time.

“You’re going to sprain a tendon,” Kageyama chided behind him.

Hinata rotated in midair and landed ready to lunge in his teammate’s face. “You’ll sprain your face with that expression you wear all the time!”

“What express—” he began but then flared, “This is my face!”

“They’re in love, don’t mind them,” Asahi welcomed discretely.

“Don’t let them hear that,” the Karasuno captain chuckled. He and Sugawara approached, the captains taking it upon themselves to do something with their hands that looked less like a handshake and more like a wrestling match.

Sugawara weathered Bokuto ruffling a fellow silver head as he said, “They’re young, so they don’t know it yet.”

“Good,” Daichi declared, the wrestling match apparently done for now. “What little brain power they can spare from volleyball should go to their studies, not mating.”

At that moment a loud, crumpling sound came from the other side of the Karasuno bus, followed by an even louder, “ASAHI-SAN!”

“That’s my cue,” the ace laughed with equal parts mirth and worry. He casually threw his bag to the ground for both hands to be free to liberate the libero.

Bokuto snickered, “For Karasuno’s guardian deity, Nishinoya-san needs a lot of looking after.”

Akaashi’s exhale hissed through his teeth. “He’s small. I would think a larger person wouldn’t need even more looking after.”

Bokuto rounded on him. “You take that back!”

“Can’t be bothered.” He strolled away with Bokuto trailing after him.

Momentarily left alone, Kuroo inhaled deeply and sighed, “Feels good to be back, yeah?”

“I guess,” Kenma uttered.

That earned him a nudge in his side. “Come on, you like the starburst’s company. He makes the crow’s glare worth the trouble.”

Kageyama glanced over his shoulder as if hearing his name, but his captain called him over to help unload. The starburst in question, though, rounded the bus at a sprinting pace and confronted Kenma. “We’ve got new moves and strategies. They’re all _whhaaha!_ and you’ll feel nothing but _ssssss_."

Kenma’s eyes softened. “You’re confident in yourself. Lev is here.”

Hinata’s smirk vanished beneath unnaturally wide eyes. His mouth opened to speak but he paused for thought, a rare thing for him. Those eyes narrowed. “Has he gotten better?”

Kuroo leaned down into their conversation. “Much better,” he crooned.

There was a second in time where it seemed Hinata could have either crumpled or exploded, and he chose the latter. Kuroo leaned back, out of the way for the spiker to leap in the air. “Really? Is he stronger, like Aone-san?”

“You’ll just have to see for yourself,” Kuroo guffawed, and then his gaze locked on a blond head coming around the front of the bus. “Tsukishima.”

The tall blonde paused and turned. “So you’re the reason for the noise.”

Kuroo laughed again. “So friendly. So friendly. Actually Bokuto just went inside. Kenma and—Kenma?”

He found him with Hinata over by one of the gyms, the latter yelling something like, “You have Pokemon Go? OH A MAGIKARP!”

Eventually the captains gathered the first years and the week of camp began. There was something about being in a facility that reeked of mutual pain and failure that just brought people together. No one’s smell over powered another’s, which was quite nice for a nose like Kenma’s. After the initial games between teams, they had time to make their own matches, and he was fond of setting for Hinata. The fiery first year smelled just like that: sweet fire. Not cinnamon, per say, but somehow like burnt marshmallows and fresh pine at the same time. Every time he jumped in the air, the sour odor of old sweat dissipated in Kenma’s face.

Whereas Lev tripped beside the net, smelling like an aquarium. Kenma sighed, “We’ve told you to watch your feet.”

“I can’t watch two feet and the ball at the same time,” the tall youth grumbled. Hinata began musing about _If I was as tall as you…!_ distracting Lev for so long that Kageyama threw the ball at Hinata’s hip. “Gah! Watch it!”

“Stop talking and play!”

“This is why I’m your only friend, baka!”

“I’m friends with the whole team!”

“Wow, just kiss already,” Lev retorted, finally standing and scratching his hair. The result was only to have Hinata and Kageyama attack him at once while Tanaka and Nishinoya howled with laughter from opposite corners of the court.

Kenma put their ball away and left them to bicker. Lev could handle himself for the most part, plus Kenma, Hinata, and Tanaka were winning against Kageyama, Nishinoya, and Lev before the disruption.

Removing his footwear, Kenma stuffed the socks into his shoes so the warm night and cool grass could ease his aching feet. He was passing one of the other illuminated gyms when he heard Bokuto and Kuroo’s voices. Peeking into the doorway, he was hardly there a second when Kuroo summoned, “Kenma! Toss for us!”

He was passing Tsukishima on his way in, who seemed intent on leaving. “You stay, Tsukki-san!”

Kenma glanced at the blond, who bristled at the familiarity. “We’ve practiced blocking for two hours.”

“You undervalue spiking because you’re tall and you have Hinata to do the work. You need to work on offense.”

“He’s barefoot,” Tsukishima countered, and all eyes went to Kenma.

Kuroo’s eyes dragged over him, his mouth slowly lowering in a frown before he remembered, “You haven’t slept since before yesterday. Never mind, you got off this time, Tsukki. Go on to the baths, Boku and I will close up here.”

“Eh?” the owl exclaimed.

Kenma was clean and nestled on his futon when the others finally arrived, and it was just his luck that somehow Karasuno, Nekoma, and Fukurodani were all in a room together. Daichi, Sugawara, and Hinata sat around him, sharing a watermelon and pears the managers had brought. Kenma had a wedge of fruit in one hand and his handheld on his lap when he heard a small but distinct gasp from Hinata. He looked up and followed his gaze to Daichi leaning over for the plate of fruit. However his shirt was long and a Sugarawa was sitting on the hem, causing the fabric around his neck to stretch and reveal a faint but clear circle of shiny pink scar tissue at the base.

Daichi and Sugawara realized their mistake and immediately righted the situation, both showing bashful embarrassment. “Well I guess the crow’s out of the bag,” Suga laughed.

Hinata and Kenma looked between the two of them, the former exclaiming softly. “You’re…bonded?”

“For two years now,” Daichi smiled. Despite the length of time, a rosy hue adorned his cheeks and flushed all the way down his neck to that matching bite mark. Suga matched him, revealing a very similar ring of faint teeth marks where his shoulder joined his neck.

“The upper class men know,” Kenma said to him. “You wouldn’t because you weren’t around to smell their scents before they were joined.” 

Hinata’s jaw hung open. “But…you’re alphas.”

Daichi shrugged. “Everyone’s different. With different needs.”

Suga giggled. “Daichi’s too alpha to be with anyone else. He would be too concerned taking care of an omega or beta instead of…enjoying them.”

Kenma had not known anything redder than Hinata’s hair, but the first year’s flesh made a damn good attempt at matching it. He swallowed audibly. “A-And you?”

Sugawara’s brows lifted. “My reasons? I love him. Always have. There wasn’t much thought to it.”

Kenma’s gaze lifted from his second piece of watermelon while Hinata exhaled slowly. Daichi complained, “You make me sound unromantic.”

Sugawara was unfazed. “I’m the only one who needs to know how romantic you are, Dai-chan.”

Kenma absorbed that and saw Hinata biting his lip, his fingers fidgeting on his knees. Sugawara noticed and voiced, “We’re not saying there’s anything wrong with—”

“Watermelon?”

Hinata jumped a little as Kageyama, Nishinoya, Tanaka, Asahi, Bokuto, and Akaashi entered from the baths. Each of them still had a towel either around their neck or on their hair. Nishinoya and Tanaka landed on the fruit platters as if they had vengeance in mind.

“What were you saying?” Asahi said, sitting next to Sugawara. “Nothing wrong with what?”

Nishinoya crawled next to them with his winnings of watermelon which he shared with Asahi as Suga smiled, “That there’s nothing wrong with being opposites.”

Hinata’s eyes widened slightly whereas Kageyama wondered, “Opposites in what?”

Sugawara shrugged innocently. “Anything. Take Asahi and Noya, for example. Asahi’s so sweet you’d think he was omega, but Noya makes for one fierce mate.”

“Asahi’s too big to be omega,” Hinata countered warily.

“Your great king is omega,” Kageyama revealed, taking his spiker completely by surprise.

“Oikawa Tooru?” he all but screamed.

“You can’t smell it under his arrogance,” Kageyama growled.

That earned laughter from the upper classmen. Bokuto wiped tears from his eyes as he reiterated, “He’s mated. You wouldn’t smell it at all.”

Both first years gaped now. “To _who_?”

“Whom,” Kenma said quietly.

“Who else?” Akaashi answered since Bokuto’s mouth was full of pears. “Iwaizumi.”

Hinata deflated. “Why is everyone mated so soon?”

Kageyama raised a brow. “Who else are we talking about?”

Kenma’s eyes lifted, seeing Kuroo and Tsukishima enter the room. The blonde looked less than pleased by the rooming arrangements but it would have been more of a surprise to see a smile on his face.

“Don’t tell me you ate it all,” Kuroo’s deep voice lamented. From behind them, the smaller Yamaguchi dashed in and managed to grab the last of the pears before anyone else did. Tsukishima accepted a slice but pushed the dish back to him. Kuroo sat near Kenma, who gave him the half-eaten slice of watermelon before slipping underneath his covers and playing his game until someone finally turned the lights off.

Kenma could not help but watch Hinata get comfortable. Soon enough he fell asleep, and rolled over so he was no longer facing him. Then, he slowly inched his way to his other side, towards Kageyama.

Kenma heard a soft, clicking sound, and peeked over at Daichi and Suga’s close futons. After their kiss, no other sound was heard, but Kenma’s thoughts went to Sugawara’s words before he was interrupted. _We’re not saying there’s anything wrong with…_

As Hinata’s body calmed further and further with sleep, Kenma could smell his sweet spice reacting with Kageyama’s own, and vice versa. Pine met warm soil, and marshmallow danced with something like caramel. It worked. They worked.

 _We’re not saying there’s anything wrong with being omega,_ was what Sugawara was going to say.

The following day was much like the first, with games and punishments, only this time for dinner the managers made a massive amount of pasta, as if the rice and meat bun bread were not enough carbohydrates.

“I want meat,” Hinata complained that night once lights were out.

“You have meat, idiot,” Kageyama said beside him.

“I mean _barbecue_ ,” he corrected. “Meat. Just meat. Not in a bun.”

“Shut it. It’s bad enough wanting it, I don’t need you talking about it.”

Kenma heard the restless movement of fabric, hungry purrs, and hums of agreement around the space, but a rustle next to him brought his gaze to Kuroo’s. He winked. Meat was coming, then.

But not for breakfast the following morning. Kenma was both impressed and slightly befuddled by Hinata’s ceaseless energy, even in the morning. Though it was dampened before eating, where volleyball was concerned, he was up and ready without fault. Usually Hinata was too busy eating to speak, but today he asked, “What do you think it’s like? Having a mate?”

Kenma’s jaw never stopped moving but somehow the taste of his salmon went bland. “I wouldn’t know.”

“But you’ve played against Seijou more than us. You’ve seen Oikawa and Iwaizumi.”

“So have you. You have two mated pairs on your team,” Kenma reminded.

“I know, but…” he began. “I feel like I’m intruding by asking? What do you think it’s like?”

“I’m not sociable. I’m not good with people. I wouldn’t know,” he repeated.

Hinata sighed, chewing his rice contemplatively and poking his lips with his chopsticks. “Do you think it’s like…what they say? We’re always told to be careful…that the alpha’s rut and the omega’s heat completely override our personalities…but my dad once said that having a mate is like adopting a new sibling.”

Kenma met his gaze and Hinata laughed. “I was younger and I don’t think he was comfortable talking about it, but what are we supposed to believe? On one side we have the world telling us to be ashamed we’re distracting the alphas, and then on the other side we’re led to believe an alpha will love us anyway…I want to know what it’s really like.”

Bokuto’s laughter drew Kenma’s gaze across the dining room, where he sat with Akaashi. Daichi and Sugawara were nearby, leaning close to one another but conversing easily with Asahi and Nishinoya. Tanaka was there too, but he was beta. Kageyama began to cross the room with his tray of food with the intent of sitting with Hinata. Yamaguchi came out behind him and diverted his path to sit with Tsukishima, who was already sitting across from Kuroo.

Under his breath, Kenma said, “It should be like having a best friend for the rest of your life.”

Hinata’s brows reached for his hairline as he peeked sideways at him, but Kageyama sat down then, changing the conversation.

This day proved to be a bad one. Starting with a bland breakfast, Nekoma lost their first practice match. While none of his teammates blamed him, they were nonetheless forced to run up that godforsaken hill behind the gym, and the day proved just as steep yet.

All anyone wanted to talk about was mating-this, omega-that. He should have taken it as a warning that the focus on volleyball was broken when Hinata asked his question. As Nekoma reentered the gym, Tanaka’s was whipping his shirt off for some victory. The beta was exempt from alpha urges, and omega insecurities. He was just Tanaka, just loud, just passionate, just beta. Karasuno was becoming renowned as the omega team for how many they had, which was impressive for a nationally competing team. Kenma had suspected that Tsukishima was beta or omega as well, but he had never asked, nor did he care to know.

Kuroo came to stand with him, watching the crows play before their next game started. Hinata and Kageyama were in good form, and Nishinoya was making dives that would normally have taken years to perfect. Tsukishima blocked with Tanaka and received the next serve.

Kenma glanced at Kuroo clapping at the volley that ensued. Karasuno lost the point, but not without a fight. Kenma left to play something on his phone in the time until his next game.

The next several days went by quickly. They woke up, had more breakfast, played more games, until the coaches drew everyone outside for what was promised: the end of camp barbecue. The larger teammates rushed passed Kenma to get first pickings, not that he minded. He settled on the grass next to Hinata, who had probably simply jumped over all of them since he already had a plate. Cheeks full, he stared at Kenma. Whatever he said resembled, “You’re not eating?”

“I don’t feel like fighting for it,” he replied mildly.

“No one’s fighting,” came a deep voice. His chin lifted and he inhaled the sweet and savory aromas on the plate Kuroo had made for him. “Our brain needs to stay strong. Boku, the fat owl, can wait, but not you.”

“WHAT WAS THAT?” the owl himself screeched.

“He said you were fat,” Akaashi repeated, for Bokuto’s or his own benefit, Kenma did not know.

He took the platter with a small, “Thanks,” and began eating despite it being enough to feed three. Hinata helped him finish it and as the sun was setting, he and Kageyama went inside to practice more. Kenma helped the coaches and managers clean up and went for a bath, only to halt mid-step before he ever reached the dorm. Between two of the gyms was a slim alley, now shrouded in darkness with the purple twilight, but the two silhouettes were distinct enough to pick out.

“No one’s in the dormitory right now,” Asahi said.

“They’re all practicing or taking baths,” Nishinoya countered, sounding impatient. “It’s been over a _week_ , Asahi-kun, and my heat’s soon. I want it.”

“Someone could come here,” Asahi said, but he was holding Nishinoya off the ground and they were already moving together.

“It won’t be a surprise what they find,” Noya laughed. “Ah-mm! Asa—”

“I know,” he kissed him, long and soft. “I missed you too. Gently now, since you’re so impatient.”

Kenma left them to it, liking the idea of a bath more and more. Asahi proved to be the one in the right, though. It would have been better for them to use a room since everyone was far too engrossed in practicing or the fresh batch of watermelon outside. Kenma had the baths all to himself. The large pool was a bit much for one person, but it allowed him to swim around before leaning back on the cool edge with his eyes closed. It was nice having clean water all to himself; for a while the bathroom only smelled of steam and soap.

Until another smell bloomed across his senses. Kenma smelled him easily, his skin reacting with the heat of the air even though his steps were silent.

“It’s too hot,” Kuroo hummed near him. He leaned over the edge of the bath, planting his elbows there. “What would I find if I came a minute later?”

“You’re overdramatic,” Kenma chided softly.

His fingers dragged designs in the water, making it rustle pleasantly. “I’m realistic. You overheat too easily, Kenma-kun.”

His narrow eyes opened. His knees shifted under the water. “Then I’ll get out. You’re making the others wait.”

“For what?” Kuroo inquired. Neither of them made any moves to leave.

“To practice blocking or whatever.”

“I’m here to bring you along. They can wait.”

Kenma’s head turned to him. Kuroo was close enough for Kenma's hair to brush against his elbow. “But I’m clean now.”

“You’ll just be tossing for us.”

“That’s not true.”

Kuroo laughed. “I suppose you’re right. The coaches want everyone together one last time tonight, though. They have something to give us. Worst thing is you might have to take another bath.”

He stood in his lithe, silent way, and by the time Kenma emerged from the water he was holding a towel open for him to walk into. He dressed in shorts but a long sleeve shirt, hoping no one would see it and then ask him to play a game.

“Kenma-san, aren’t you hot?” Hinata asked when they were all gathered in the main gymnasium.

“No, I’m usually cold,” he said. That inspired something like admiration in Hinata, who went on to talk about _Oh, that must be why you’re so calm during the games! Suga-san usually switches with me before I get burnt out…_ until the coaches called for quiet.

The result was everyone ogling the tickets in each man’s hand. “We can’t let you leave Tokyo before seeing a pro game,” the Nekoma coach announced with a chuckle. Hinata and Kageyama were beside themselves, only rivaled by Nishinoya and Tanaka. The coaches handed off the tickets to the team captains, who in turn passed them out.

“The game’s tomorrow at ten sharp. If you’re not up and ready to leave an hour before that you’re getting there yourself,” Ukai-san declared, although whether his words were heard or not could not be certain with the way his team was reacting. Kenma yawned, standing to leave—

“You’re not excited?” Bokuto interrogated, and then he noticed. “You didn’t even grab a ticket?”

“I’ve got it,” Kuroo said behind Kenma, slipping two inside his pocket. “There’s nothing to grab if he doesn’t have pockets. Looks like we can’t practice tonight since we’ve got to be up early tomorrow.”

“No earlier than usual,” Hinata chimed, already making a line toward the volleyballs.

“Yes, earlier than usual,” Kuroo corrected. “The game is at ten, and the coaches like to leave earlier than they say. Leaving at nine really means leaving at eight-thirty, and if you want first pickings of breakfast and enough time to eat it, then you’ll have to get up at seven. Maybe even six-thirty…”

Hinata and Kageyama blanched. “So early…” they whispered in unison.

“You don’t have to scare them,” Kenma scolded indifferently.

Kuroo’s brows lifted. “I thought you didn’t want to sweat after a bath?”

Kenma pushed his bicolored hair behind his ear. “You’re making a bad reputation for yourself.”

Far from feeling ashamed, Kuroo’s chest puffed out. “Good. Birds should be afraid of cats.”

“Crows are smarter than cats,” Kenma reminded, thoroughly deflating his captain.

The following morning saw a raucous transportation on the Tokyo subway. Far from yawning or bleary eyed, the teammates kept their heads on a swivel, trying to see everything in the metropolis. They had just missed the morning rush, but they were shushed more than once before they arrived in total silence. Well, momentary silence.

“Is this were the Little Giant played?” Hinata chirped. “Who’s playing again? Who are their spikers? Noya-san! Do you know their libero?”

Kenma sat patiently with his handheld, waiting for the game to begin while the coaches and upper class men graciously answered Hinata's questions the best they could. The bubbly omega earned the attention of a couple other high school coaches sitting near them, growing the conversation and amusement for the adults.

“Akiteru said the wings are the best players on that team,” Tsukishima said at one point.

“Your brother?” Kuroo asked. “He still plays?”

“Recreationally,” Tsukishima confirmed, rather offhandedly.

“That doesn’t matter. If he loves the game he’s good to stay loyal to it. You obviously learned from him since you have the patience for these crows.”

Kenma peeked at Tsukki’s mildly surprised expression, and then at the oblivious crows in question. Kenma could not say he loved volleyball, not like Kuroo or Hinata or Kageyama, and the amount of times Kuroo had found him avoiding it were innumerable. It was a lie to say he never enjoyed it, especially lately with the new additions to all of the teams, but Kenma considered volleyball like a puzzle more than a game. What are the pieces of the other team, how do they work, and who is the boss? When the rotation changes, how does the board change, and what is the second phase? It was a testament to Karasuno’s growth that the players no longer thought in terms of speed and strength and more as to how each of them worked. Sure, Kageyama and Hinata worked best as a pair, but Hinata worked just as well with Sugawara’s instruction and tosses as he did with Kageyama’s. Nishinoya seemed like the only one strong enough—or brave enough—to receive Asahi’s spikes, until Daichi received one and Tanaka spiked it for the point. They had gone from individuals, to pairs, and now they were a malleable, powerful team.

Kenma observed Tsukishima, Kuroo, and Bokuto. Tall and strong, they made a wall as formidable as Date Tech. It was almost a shame they were not at the same school. Then again, that may have been for the best. When Bokuto’s spirits were down, Akaashi and the rest of his team knew how to fix his wings for him to fly again. That was irreplaceable. Tsukishima and Kuroo, though, could go anywhere…

The game commenced, encompassing Kenma in a wall of sound as everyone around him stood up, cheering at the tops of their lungs, which was no small thing. He looked down to return to his game—

Kuroo hoisted him up. “Stand on the seat until everyone settles down.”

That black hair brushed against his face as he eased away from Kenma, leaving him dazed and oblivious to the game more than he already was. He zipped his jacket up near his throat, feeling cold in the massive gymnasium, but soon he was able to sit again and found himself enjoying the spectacle.

“He did the thing!” Hinata exclaimed. “He dumped like you do Kenma-san!”

“Who’s that setter?” Kageyama wondered, but a new voice came to answer him.

“Why, that’s his mate, Tobio-chan.”

Hinata piped something like “Great king!” before slapping his hands over his mouth. Oikawa Tooru sauntered toward the empty seats next to their team with none other than Iwaizumi Hajime, as well as a couple other Seijou teammates.

“You’re late,” Kageyama growled.

Oikawa only yawned. “Tokyo’s so far away. It’s not like we missed anything.”

“You did!” Hinata chimed. “The other team’s captain does jump serves like you, but better!”

Kageyama glared at him warily, but Oikawa was statuesque. “Does he now?”

Hinata did not catch the hint. “He’s already won three points because _SHWHOOSH!_ he aimed the ball right in between players’ hands and it slipped right through!”

“Like so,” Iwaizumi narrated as the captain himself leaped and put his full force behind the ball. “Huh. He is better than you.”

Oikawa’s demeanor shattered. “Iwa-chan!”

“What? It’s not my fault you can’t manage to get up in time for a full length practice.”

Kageyama and Hinata glanced at each other, now watching two spectacles at once. This was nothing new to Kageyama, but he had forgotten what it was like to have Oikawa Tooru and Iwaizumi Hajime in the same space for an extended period of time. He could not say that he missed it, but it was refreshing seeing someone yank his senpai down a peg. At one point Hinata leaned over to Kenma to whisper, “I think you might be right.”

“Hmm?” Kuroo wondered on his other side.

“Nothing,” Kenma finished.

The game progressed with puissance and ended with flair, being a tie to match point with each set and the final volley lasting for six minutes. Everyone was raving about it as they shuffled out of the gymnasium and their voices could be heard more clearly in the lobby. Tanaka was with Asahi and Nishinoya, typing something into his phone and saying, “I can call my sister. She’s like me believe it or not, so you’ll be fine.”

“What’s wrong?” Daichi came over.

Asahi shifted his weight, restless. “Yuu’s heat is coming. I think we have time but I want to be safe. All the excitement might trigger it sooner.”

His captain nodded, his stance changing slightly. “We’ll wait with you. Where are you meeting her? It’s better near the edge of the city where she won’t need to deal with the traffic.”

Nishinoya blew a raspberry. “Don’t bother. You guys should stay in the city. There’s no point in getting out of the city center unless you’re going home. Asahi will take care of me.”

It was Asahi’s turn to strengthen his legs, bracing his chest out like a proud alpha. Far from reeking like a blaze, his scent curled around his mate gently, calming, and confident. Noya visibly leaned toward him. Like Hinata and Kageyama as they watched.

“I’ll go with you,” Kenma said.

Asahi and Nishinoya turned around, both surprised. “We don’t want to bother you,” the alpha said.

“It’s no trouble. I live in the same direction as you.”

Asahi gave his bashful smile but there was…grit in his voice as he said, “What are you? I’m sorry, I just can’t be on edge right now, meaning no offense. I don’t know your smell.”

Nishinoya, however, got right up next to Kenma and inhaled beside his neck. “Oh!” he exclaimed, and then breathed again. “There isn’t…wow, there’s nothing. It’s kind of like you’re dead.”

Kuroo guffawed from where he had been standing with Tsukishima. “If he was dead, he’d smell a bit worse.”

Asahi frowned and asked, “May I?”

Kenma tipped his head ever so slightly, giving him room. He felt Kuroo’s warmth at his backside and the cool air along his neck. Asahi did not come any nearer than necessary, but he breathed and his air tickled Kenma’s skin.

“You smell kind of…” He stood back, his brow deepening with thought. It vanished quickly enough. “Well, you don’t smell like an alpha, so I’m comfortable. Sorry about that.”

“I’ll come too, if it’s all right.” All eyes turned to Tsukishima. “My brother’s coming back from school,” he explained briefly. “He’ll want to hear about the game.”

“I’d like to meet him,” Kuroo seconded. “We’re creating a nice gathering here.”

So the six of them left for the subway station. It was clear now that Noya was indeed changing. He and Tanaka spoke animatedly about the game but indigo shadows were forming under his eyes even while his skin contrastingly glowed. Occupants of the train shifted near them, but Asahi already gave the impression of a delinquent, so a glare from a mated ruffian sent those few scurrying. Noya and Asahi held hands discretely between their thighs and eventually Noya set his head on Tanaka’s shoulder, the train lulling him into a calm sleep.

“When we get there,” Kuroo leaned into Kenma so he could speak quietly. “Do you want to grab something to eat before we go to Tsukki-san’s?”

“No.”

“You sure? You love Tokyo’s ramen.”

“We come here all the time.”

“You won’t be eating until dinner, then. You haven’t eaten a lot this week.”

“Getting food would waste time from Tsukishima’s.”

Kuroo shrugged. “It’d be good to have something in our stomachs during the journey—”

“I’m not going.”

Kuroo looked at him. “What?”

Kenma’s gaze was on his game, but he was not pressing the buttons. “I’m not going to Tsukishima’s. I don’t need to meet his family.”

Asahi and Kuroo shared a glance but Tsukki spoke for himself. “I’m not bothered. It’s been a long week and that’s less people to host.”

Kuroo and Tsukki alone. Kenma swallowed but his throat was dry. “How much longer is this train?”

“Should be twenty minutes,” Tanaka said, checking his phone.

Kenma did not have twenty minutes. He did not have ten. An odd…tickle became present under his seat and he could no longer tell what color was in front of him. His vision of the seats in front of him became spotty; too bright in places and too dark in others. It took a long minute for him to realize he had stood up. How long had he been drenched with sweat?

He swallowed again, going to the doors, hoping for the fresh air during stops, no matter how brief, to fill his lungs. It worked for a time, but the rush of air and influx of people spread aromas around the train. Kenma grasped the rail next to the door to remain steady during the sways and lurches of the train…

He smelled it before he saw it in the reflection of the window. The alpha had entered the train three stops ago. Now he stood behind Kenma, his scent sharp and cloyingly pungent…like kimchi fermented too long. Kenma did not like kimchi. The only fermented thing he could stand was miso. He liked fresh things. Watermelon, fish, rain…Kuroo’s smell after a bath. Any time, really. He did not smell like other alphas, or maybe Kenma had simply known him for so long that he did not notice. His hair somehow managed to smell warm and fresh at the same time, making the back of Kenma’s throat hurt as he watched the alpha’s hand in the reflection reach for him, touch his shoulder…

It was only a touch, but Kenma’s center of gravity followed the pull, all the way to the floor. His head _dinged!_ on the central pole as he collapsed. The tingle in between his legs, deep inside his ass turned hot and wet, gooey and slithering for relief as hands touched him. His clothing pulled, the fabric tugged, and roars above him pushed his consciousness to black out. If this was his fate, he did not care to be awake for it.

*******

 _I'm omega,_ Kenma realized with odd, ambiguous clarity. It was years ago, too many, in fact. It was hard to tell by how small he was now, but Kenma had started and finished growing before anyone else. There was a time that he and Kuroo were the same height.

_“Tetsu?”_

His eyes found his best friend’s, who was gaping. Of course Kuroo had caught up and was already taller than him, but this was the only time he had ever appeared…frightened. Shocked.

They were on a school trip to some farm for their lesson on the biology of plants, but the students had gotten a different biology lesson when Kenma’s early puberty made itself known. It was like a switch had been flicked, and Kenma dropped like a stone. He could only liken the moment to volleyball, when the game slows down and you can see every player’s position, every movement, and the choice is presented. Receive or let it fall out. Jump or dive. Dump or spike. Kenma stared up at the sky with that same clarity, only unable to move. Far from being afraid, he was a child with a child’s curiosity, and he felt every sensation with mild intrigue.

It was not until later that he realized how the coin toss of his life had predicted the rest of the game. Kuroo had picked him up, then and there, ignoring all of the teachers’ shouts and ran Kenma all the way home. However many kilometers that was, and he had not put Kenma down until he startled Kenma’s mother by bursting into the house, running up to Kenma’s room, and dumping him on the bed.

Kenma remembered the way Kuroo’s arms had shaken when they were free of his weight, how Kuroo’s skin shined with sweat like his own. _“I-I’m sorry,”_ he had said shakily, puzzling Kenma. Kuroo had kissed his forehead, and run out the door.

He did not understand that either until later, when Kuroo’s mother came to apologize to Kenma’s. _“Your son triggered his rutting,”_ she said. _“The shock of it, I think. Poor Tetsu only made it away from Kenma-kun’s heat in time before his own consumed him.”_

Kenma had listened from the corner of the hallway. His heat had only lasted two days, but Kuroo had to stay home for a little over a week. _“Is it my fault?”_ he asked his mother when Kuroo’s had left.

 _“No, dove,”_ she had said, gathering him on her lap. _“This would have happened anyway. You see…Tetsu-kun is an alpha, not like your daddy and me. He and I are called beta.”_

 _“What’s it matter what people are called?”_ Kenma had ignorantly asked. His mother did her best to explain but it sounded like omegas and alphas had both drawn the short straws in life. _“Does this mean Tetsu and I aren’t friends any more?”_

His mother hesitated, raking his hair out of his eyes. _“No. It just means…you have to be careful with him now.”_

But he did not have to be careful at all. The next time he saw Kuroo, the boy had knelt right onto the ground and apologized. When Kenma finally threatened to leave unless he stood up, Kuroo had dirt on his nose. Nothing changed. Kuroo got bigger and eventually Kenma just sort of…didn’t. Students missed class and then came back. Then Kuroo joined the volleyball team and somehow managed to recruit Kenma too. Everyone ignored stories on the news of an omega going into heat on the wrong side of Tokyo. The issue was this coming Friday’s game, not the beta hospitalized for protecting an omega from an abusive alpha.

Back and forth it went like a ball on the court. First the omegas, then the alphas, and then it was the omegas again. So much trouble, and Kenma did not want to be bothered with it.

Perhaps that was why he disliked Tsukishima… No, he did not dislike him. He respected him, admired him even. Because Tsukki-san was just like him. He did not care about the labels, he just wanted to be out of it. Except Tsukki did a better job of it.

*******

Kenma opened his heavy lids with tremors. “Sorry!” came Tanaka’s voice. “You sorta…had a heat stroke. Literally, and wacked your head really hard on the train.”

He removed the ice bag from Kenma’s scalp. The backs of his eyes ached—everything ached—but he managed to see how they were in a car instead of the train or station.

“Everything good back there?” came a chipper female’s voice. The car swerved precariously, causing Kenma’s body to roll and he got a face full of shirt…

He realized his head was in Kuroo’s lap. The alpha was staring out of the window, doing his best not to touch him more than he already was, and in Kenma’s over sensitive state, the absence was excruciating.

“Tetsurou…”

His eyes widened, the alpha taking a long moment for composure before he looked down at him. “You’re bleeding.”

And he was. Kuroo licked his split lip but more than his face was affected. His knuckles were already blushing with bruises and one of his elbows was scraped pretty badly.

“Er, yeah,” Tanaka laughed anxiously. “There was an...ordeal…on the train. But Kuroo-sama took care of it, you could say.”

“Will you make the news, you think?” came his sister’s voice from the front.

“Shut up, Baka-nee!” her brother snapped, seeing Kuroo silently return to looking out the window.

“Kuroo-sama?” Kenma repeated vaguely, his head wagging with the rocking of the car. The alpha glanced down at him only to have his stern expression wiped from his face when Kenma giggled breathlessly. “I told you not to scare them.”

Kuroo’s features softened into something like sadness as he finally patted Kenma’s head, stroking his fingers through his hair. “It wasn’t the crows who needed scaring.”

“We’re here!” The car lurched to a halt and Tanaka helped Kenma onto Kuroo’s back. He got out of the car and offered, “Do you need…uh…”

“No.” Kuroo answered.

“Oh thank god. Until next time, Nekoma!”

Handling bags, Kenma, and his spare key, Kuroo opened Kenma’s house. Because of all the early morning practices, Kenma’s mother had trusted him enough to give him a spare key and get her son out of bed…and occasionally back into it.

Kuroo dumped him rather unceremoniously onto the bed and made to leave but a clatter on the floor behind him made him turn around. Kenma had reached out and grabbed the strap of his bag and been pulled off the bed. “What are you doing?”

Kenma slumped, somewhat kneeling and with his head down. “Are you going? To Tsukki’s?”

Kuroo sighed, impatient to leave. Kenma winced with that sigh, feeling everything in him cringe at the sound of the alpha wanting to leave. His only friend wanting to leave. Going somewhere else…to possibly another omega’s home that was over two hours away round-trip. “I can’t go to Tsukki’s… I doubt his brother would take too well to a rutting alpha in his house.”

Kenma’s face jerked up, and Kuroo blanched at the sight of tears there. He sank to his own knees as Kenma gasped, “Are you? Because of me?”

“What do you think I did today?” he wondered, his voice rough…and soft around the edges. He tentatively reached out and wiped one of Kenma’s cheeks, but did not trust himself to wipe the other one. “God, I…I nearly killed him. That alpha who touched you. All of them.”

The ache in his core bloomed, dripping through the arteries of his legs and coming to tingle in his feet. He never thought he would _like it_ , an alpha fighting for him. He had seen Kuroo play on the court a thousand times, fighting for his team, but Kenma had liked seeing Hinata play more; to see an omega defy everything and soar over the alphas.

This was different. No one else was involved. It was just Tetsu and him in his room. The only one losing could be Kenma.

“Please…don’t go to Tsukki’s,” he sobbed. His loins ached. Fuck, everything hurt in this dark room but Tetsu was the warmth for his cramps and his…his best friend. “Tetsu, please don’t go to Tsukki’s!”

Kuroo stared, dumbfounded as Kenma broke apart before his eyes. His nostrils flared at the scent attacking his nose, his glands…the smell of an omega afraid…abandoned. That old look of fear arrested his eyes as he leaned forward, gently bonking his head with Kenma’s. “Why would I go to Tsukki’s, Kenma?” he crooned deeply.

He gasped, the way Kuroo _said his name…_

“Have you been afraid all this time? Is that why you haven’t been eating?”

“I wasn’t eating because I wasn’t hungry…stupid alpha,” he accused with a loud sniffle.

“Same difference,” Kuroo quipped.

“There’s no difference!” Kenma erupted, but he was not quite sure what they were talking about anymore. “I can’t…I can’t…”

Kuroo reached out to hold him steady before he keeled over. “You can’t what?”

But he leaned all of his weight into the alpha, finding that pocket of heat where his scent rested along his neck, between his jaw and chest. “I can’t bear smelling anyone else. I don’t want to. I don’t want to smell you with anyone else’s…”

A sob wracked through his body. “I want you to smell like this forever.”

Kuroo carefully pushed him away, his back touching the side of his bed for support. “Smell like what, Kenma?”

He shook his head, not wanting to say it. His breath hitched in his throat as Kuroo leaned in deep enough to smell his own neck and chest. Kenma’s hands were somewhere on his jacket and he was sure his heart was beating unnaturally fast but _oh…_ Tetsurou’s breath there…

“What do I smell like, Kenma?” he uttered again, never moving from that spot.

He trembled, his fists finding the fabric at Kuroo’s shoulders. “Like…sunlight on water. Warm…and nice. Like the color of the sea and lemonade and spicy…”

“I smell like an izikaya in Nagasaki,” he reiterated dryly.

Kenma crumpled. “Don’t make fun of me.”

“I’m sorry,” he chuckled, nuzzling Kenma’s hair as he said more seriously, “I’m sorry, shhh, I’m sorry… When Noya and Asahi smelled you, I thought I was going to snap. It was then I realized that I’m the only one who can smell you when you’re not in heat.”

Kenma’s teary and sweat-glistening face lifted from his hands. “What?”

“Mmhm,” Kuroo nodded, nuzzling his temple and kissing there softly. Kenma’s eyelashes fluttered. “To them your detergent or deodorant overpowers it, but to me you smell like the flesh of peaches and fresh roses after a good rain. I’ve always wondered if you’d taste like them too.”

Kenma felt Kuroo’s fingertips on his throat as his chin tipped up. Surprisingly soft lips pressed to his own. His lips tickled, and he could feel Tetsurou’s breath shake when he pulled back before kissing him again. The groan that rumbled deep in his throat rattled all the way down to Kenma’s wetness. He opened his eyes to see Kuroo’s firmly closed, the muscles in his jaw prominent.

“I was wrong.”

Kenma’s hope fluttered weakly.

“You taste…like plum sake. Maybe we both belong in an izakaya.”

Kenma did not so much lunge for the kiss but fell into it. His hands clumsily reached for Kuroo as he found the alpha’s lips, but thankfully Kuroo had more tact. He pulled Kenma’s shirt and jacket up, only breaking from his mouth in order to pull them over his head. “Kenma-kun, you’re _radiating_ heat,” he rushed. His fingertips dusted over ribs and back before coming to rest on the back of Kenma’s head, steering their messy kiss into something controlled and deep.

Kenma hummed deeply when he tasted Tetsu’s tongue, downright purring. It was hot and tasted darkly sweet, like garnet summer strawberries. He licked over the split in his lip, tasting blood and knowing he probably shouldn't but he lapped it up until all he tasted was Kuroo. He knew when Tetsu smelled the slick soaking his pants when the kiss became more teeth than lips. Kuroo sucked in his bottom lip, nibbling on it between kisses until Kenma giggled.

Kuroo reared back suddenly, as if he had just remembered something while Kenma swayed with him. He pecked kisses on his mouth despite the alpha saying. “I need to get home….or I’ll…have you…”

Kenma was climbing onto his lap, or at least trying too. Kuroo was not close enough, and he just. Kept. Talking.

“Kenma, your head. You hit it too hard. We can’t go further than—ah! That feels good—No. Kenma-kun, it’s your heat—”

The omega slapped the alpha’s cheeks, holding his head in place. “Fine. It’s my heat. And what about when it isn’t my heat? What about when I want to kiss you without the stupid excuse of hormones? Hinata was right: it’s like we’re only allowed to want it when you say we can want it. Well I _want you now, Tetsurou_ , and I’m not going to let the excuse of being an omega let me kiss you. I’ve used it enough to avoid being anything. You’re my best friend. You’re the only constant I’ve ever had, so if I want to kiss you or fuck you, won’t you let me?”

The expression on Tetsu’s face would be forever burned into Kenma’s memory right then. “Okay,” he rasped.

Kenma’s eyes narrowed. “Okay?”

Kuroo’s eyelashes sagged as his gaze roamed over the omega’s angry pout. “Okay,” he laughed like he was drunk. He kissed that pout and then he kissed it again, his kisses drifting to Kenma’s neck. “If you think I’m the one in control here, you’re very very wrong. I’ve already put a train of alphas into submission. I’ve always felt like I could do anything with you with me.”

Kenma’s arms went around his neck while mewls were pulled from him by the nibbles and licks on his neck. He pulled him close enough to cut off his words. “You’re talking too much.”

“I’m nervous,” he rumbled, making Kenma shiver as he consumed his mouth. He was pinned between Kuroo and his bed, loosely straddling the alpha’s thighs until he was gripped by the waist and hoisted onto the bed. No sooner had he landed then Kuroo reared back, standing over him. Kenma whined and reached for him, “Tetsu! Tetsu,” but the alpha’s intent was slightly lower. His fingers curled over and under track bottoms and underwear alike, and with a yank, Kenma’s bare legs flopped onto the bed. The fresh air on his legs was a relief for only a second as Tetsurou’s eyes fell on the mess that was his apex. Kenma had the urge to cover himself, and his hands lifted to do so, but he swallowed and set them up by his head.

Kuroo dragged his gaze over the swollen red cock there, his eyes lavishing over it like he wanted to do with his tongue…but he knew if he… _tasted_ Kenma it would all be over.

So he aimed his gaze higher, his eyes feeling burned as he blinked hard and scooped his arms around Kenma’s waist. He kissed up the sternum, his tongue lapping between his lips with each kiss to taste any part of Kenma he could get.

He paused, hearing as well as feeling the chaotic heartbeat inside. Kuroo kissed there, and then the nipple above it, letting his tongue wag circles and flick the tip. He explored the soft flesh around it, nuzzling and pressing his lips to find the muscle and bone underneath…

Kuroo bit him, and Kenma screamed. His hands slapped over his mouth while Kuroo stared at him widely. “Not good?”

Kenma shook his head but Kuroo could not tell if he was nodding or shaking. Experimentally, he suckled a little at the other nipple. “Tell me, Kenma. I need to know how you feel.”

Kenma shook his head more clearly this time. “It’s good! It’s really good. You can’t hurt me.”

Kuroo gave the nipple a better bite this time, relishing the quaking effect through Kenma. “You’re much smaller than me. I could do real damage to you.”

“But you won’t,” Kenma whimpered. “You’ve never hurt me.”

Kuroo felt and looked as if the air had just been sucked from his lungs. He began to crawl down Kenma’s body, biting and occasionally sucking hard on a spot “You’re not going to be able to say that tomorrow when you wake up with scars.”

“Just,” he trembled, “Ah! Do something there! I’m gonna scream, it hurts.”

Kuroo looked and saw a fresh tear leak across both of Kenma’s temples. That would not do. In one gulp he all but swallowed Kenma, who rose off the bed, his jaw open in an airless scream. And Tetsurou was right: he was done for. Kenma’s taste made him salivate, wetting him more than he already was. He growled wantonly, making gooey sucking sounds with his mouth as he pulled off, and then slid back on. One of his hands reached up to grip Kenma’s waist, holding the both of them steady.

He grunted at the pull of Kenma’s grip in his hair, but he sucked harder, his other fingertips seeking his entrance on their own. The omega came hard in his mouth, sobbing on the other end of the bed while slick dripped into Kuroo’s palm. Kenma yelped when his lower half was pulled upwards, his knees thrown over Kuroo’s shoulders so his mouth found what he wanted. His heels thunked dully on Kuroo’s back but the alpha hardly seemed to notice as he drank Kenma in, lapping up slick with deep, humming purrs that resonated in his chest.

An alpha’s purr of taking care of his omega.

Kenma’s head tossed back as Kuroo’s tongue circled and entered him. The ache inside him was abated briefly, but as Kuroo’s dark eyes alighted on Kenma’s open neck, his need intensified.

_“Tetsu…”_

Kuroo carefully set him down and remained high above him. Peeling off his shirt, Kuroo’s strong torso rippled in the weak light. A prominent bruise was spreading along his side under his arm, and another on the opposite hip. “Thank you.”

The shirt caught on his chin and then hair, but with a final yank, Tetsurou blinked down at him. “Huh?”

“Fighting for me,” he reiterated.

And then there it was, the mischievous grin that Cheshire would be proud of. “Does it scare you that I enjoyed it?”

Kenma rolled his eyes. “That’s so alpha of you.”

Easing onto all fours, Kuroo leaned down to kiss his forehead. “I only liked winning.” He rubbed his cheek along Kenma’s, kissing his nose too. “I don’t want to see you fall like that ever again because of your heat. I’ll teach your body to know me, to know that I’ll take care of it. To be slow instead of taking what it needs, because I’m here to give it.”

Kenma lifted a weak hand to pat his hair. “I don’t think that’s how it works.”

“It can,” he contradicted, and then thought, “It might. Our physiology changes when we’re bonded. Alphas become less aggressive and omegas heat more predictably.”

Kenma’s fingers trickled over his scalp, down to his jaw. “You want me? I can have you forever?”

That sad, painful expression furrowed his features again as he caught the hand and kiss the wrist. “I’ve wanted to bond you since my first rutting. The only thing stopping me was feeling how limp your body was as I ran us home. I was terrified. I thought it was my fault; that somehow I had broken you.”

Kenma burst into laughter, startling Tetsurou to the extent that he had to ask, “What are you laughing at?”

But all he could do was gulp as Kenma smiled up at him and opened his arms up to him. Kuroo scooped him up and rolled onto his side so his embrace was not crushing. “I thought the same,” came Kenma’s muffled voice. “I thought I should have been the one apologizing that day.”

Kuroo adjusted his hold so he could kiss Kenma’s neck, his lips lingering when Kenma’s throat vibrated dully with a purr. “You smell so good…” he breathed in the crevice of the neck.

“Do it.”

Kuroo’s breath stopped. His heart might have too. His head shook slightly. “No. Not like this.”

Kenma’s voice sounded high pitched in his throat, his scent fringed with fear as he clutched Tetsurou’s shoulders. “Like what?”

“Unplanned. More pain than pleasure. If you’re mine, then I’ll take care of you from the start.”

Kenma heaved a frustrated sigh and shoved Kuroo’s shoulders so he was lying on the bed with Kenma atop him. “You’re distracting me by talking. You’re never this nervous in a game.”

Kuroo laughed, making Kenma rise and fall on his torso. “This is a bit more important than a—”

Kenma covered his lips with both hands before one of them went behind him, searching for the hem of Kuroo’s pants. The alpha lurched up when Kenma pulled his cock free. His palm slapped against Kuroo’s chest, halting him from sitting up and pushing him back down. He nestled back in the cradle of his hips before lifting up to position the head of Tetsurou's length…

Air rushed from Kenma’s lips, slick rushing out of him as a wave of lust and nausea hit him. He slumped over Kuroo’s chest, unable to hold onto anything. “Tetsu,” he winced and cried out as a cramp clenched inside him, twisting his stomach and straining the flesh inside his entrance. “Tetsu, help me…please.”

He sat up easily with the omega’s weight on top of him. “Breathe, Kenma. Just breathe, I’ve got you.”

He tried, but the air rustled in his throat, sweat sliding down his face to be caught by Kuroo’s hair as he lifted him by his ass and bit the flesh of Kenma’s neck to hold him in place. His teeth eased off when he felt Kenma’s molten insides clench around his tip. They both sucked in air as he carefully lowered Kenma down, pausing every now and then to let him get adjusted even though his arms were bearing his entire weight...but Kuroo was stronger now.

When Kenma’s ass sat upon his thighs, the omega reeled. “Kenma-kun?” he exclaimed, catching him and supporting his head.

“S’good,” he swallowed. “You feel good, Tetsu-chan.”

Kuroo exhaled heavily, leaning his forehead on the omega’s chest. “Don’t scare me like that.”

He giggled. “Someone has to, alpha.”

Kuroo growled, then, fierce and claiming as he dumped Kenma on his back. The movement inside him made his eyes open wide, and then shut firmly when Tetsu languidly grinded inside him. “Ahhm! Uhn…that’s ah ah!”

Kuroo was pulling out of him, only to the tip. He poised himself on top of his arms so his hips could move freely and he had an unobstructed view of Kenma’s face, his chest heaving, and his throat…

“You’re cruel, Kenma-kun, and for that I won’t last long.”

“J-Just,” he inhaled, “do it properly, okay?”

Tetsurou grinned. “Okay, since you asked nicely.”

“Don’t—hmm—tease me.”

Kuroo tried to laugh, but the way Kenma was squeezing made it hard to do anything important like breathe. He controlled his thrusts as much as he could but Kenma’s chin still rocked with each one. It was all Kuroo could do not to push him so far he fainted, which if his hooded eyes were any indication, could be soon.

Tetsurou pulled him back up to sitting and propped a hand behind him so he could thrust his hips upward. Kenma bounced on his lap until Tetsurou growled. “Bite me.”

His lips were parted and plump, glistening under his tilted eyes. Tetsurou cried out as his knot grew and he began to lose what little control he had. “I want you to do it first. Bite deep, and hold on.”

Kenma pulled himself forward, and licked over a gland. Kuroo saw stars, but it was nothing like when Kenma’s teeth broke through skin, and his saliva touched the open gland. Tetsurou’s voice was unrecognizable as it snarled and then whimpered, claimed. His knot lodged inside, making Kenma shudder but he held on, licking and gnawing until he tasted a little bit of blood. Kuroo collapsed backward, holding Kenma to his chest while his gland was licked and sucked. He had never felt more content in his life.

Reaching between them, he found Kenma’s pulsing erection and pumped his fist around it, giving the head a swipe each time, and it was enough to make Kenma cry out into the pillow behind him. He rolled ever so slightly to the side, opening Kenma’s throat himself and with his insides still clenching around him, he marked his omega.

Kenma thrashed around him but he held firm with his arms and teeth, protecting Kenma from ripping his own gland out. When he was done Tetsurou lapped at his mark, kissing between licks and dragging a design along Kenma’s spine. Before long only purrs and soft snores came from him, so with his knot still tight inside, Tetsurou joined Kenma in sleep.

At dawn Kenma awoke to a bed that was too cold, and he panicked. Kuroo came running in, naked and holding bottles of water from the kitchen along with a bento he had found in the fridge. But he threw it all down to catch his omega before he fell out of bed. “I’ve got you, sshhhh. I was just getting food. You’re dehydrated.”

“Don’t leave!” he cried, sobbing in his mate’s arms.

“I’m sorry, I thought you were asleep. I was only gone for a minute. I’ll take you with me next time. Hush, now. Lie down. Let’s eat something, yeah?”

Kuroo did not let him touch a piece of fish until he had consumed an entire bottle of water. When Kenma was finished, he traded the bottle for a cool kiss that would have turned into more if Kuroo was not hungry himself. “This would have been easier at my house,” he mused, stuffing Kenma’s mouth with salmon as well as his own.

Kenma hummed at the thought of lying in Kuroo’s scent day and night; having food from the refrigerator he kept in his room. Tetsurou wiped rice from the side of his mouth with a smile. “Next time.”

The bento was not finished before Kenma wailed in pain as new cramps over took him. Kuroo took him on his stomach, easing the pain away with each thrust of his hips. He wiped away Kenma’s sweat before he too fell back asleep.

The morning and rest of the day progressed in the same way. Kenma’s parents did not need an announcement to figure out what had happened, and left food outside the door for them. It was easiest and the most relieving to fuck Kenma from behind, but if Kuroo was not taken by surprise from the cramps, he ate up slick from the source, leaving hickies all across Kenma’s inner thighs before sitting him on his lap, and riding out the waves of pleasure together.

The only time after that when Kenma awoke to an empty bed, was when Tetsurou was using the bed frame as a backrest. The room was illuminated in the blue light of the television screen even though he had muted the sound of the video game. Kenma reached out to touch his hair, and Kuroo whirled around.

“I’m okay,” he assured. “The boss’s weakness is when he’s attacking you. You have to dodge and strike.”

Tetsu grinned between the kisses on his wrist, but he turned the game off instead. “You haven’t saved,” Kenma chided. “What a waste.”

“I’d rather talk with you,” he murmured as he climbed back alongside him. And talk they did, until Kenma’s exhales became heavy and his features strained. Afterward, Kuroo made them a bath, and Kenma managed to sleep the rest of the night through.

It was halfway through the week when Kenma was really able to appreciate how well Tetsurou was taking care of him. “You’re really good at this.”

He was somehow making the bed and eating a meat bun at the same time. He perked up with it in his mouth. “Heh?”

“This,” Kenma nodded at the fresh nest. “Being an alpha.”

“Well my mother’s alpha,” he said, fluffing the pillows. “My father’s omega.”

Next he picked up Kenma from where he sat on the desk, his mouth full of meat bun. “Is that kind of pairing regular?”

Kuroo laughed. “I never really cared to know what was regular or not. All I ever knew were two people who loved each other and worked their damned hardest to make each other happy. You could say my standards were set pretty high.”

“Hm hm,” his mate giggled as he chewed. He pecked a kiss on Kuroo’s lips before they sat together on the bed. As he kicked off his pants and slipped inside Kenma, Tetsurou could not tell which was his favorite: the intoxicated frenzy of fucking and then the exhausted cuddles afterward, or now, when Kenma’s heat was more controlled. Holding him close, Kenma was able to move on his own now even though they were lazily propped on their sides by all of the pillows. Kuroo’s hands wandered his sides and over his ass while the omega took his pleasure, lavishing Kenma’s glands so he was squirming.

Kuroo enjoyed fucking in the dirty sheets. He wondered if he should not like it but then discarded that thought. Of course he would like it. Fucking and sleeping and fucking some more, living in the proof of their bond and pleasure. The only reason he washed the damn sheets was because Kenma disliked being dirty, but he enjoyed that aspect of him. His friendship with Kenma separated him from other stereotypical alphas; those who chose to soak in their rutting sweat and then wear it a week afterward for the world to smell, as if the stench made them more powerful.

Besides, washing gave them more opportunities to be together. Kuroo liked making the bath and turning around to find Kenma peeking around the doorframe. He liked fingering his entrance and massaging inside since making love would cause too much splashing. And Kenma smelled so good after a bath; pure and unadulterated and wafting around Kuroo's senses because the steam lifted it from his body. The way Kenma stretched and luxuriated on clean sheets had the alpha on his knees, bending over his naked body and kissing him as if he might break…before leaving a bite on his ass.

But Kenma liked a clean Tetsurou the most. Near the end of the week he awoke from a poke in the cheek and opened his eyes to find Kenma close but not close enough, glaring disappointedly. That meant he smelled. So half-awake he washed and then fell back into bed, not needing to gather the omega to him because he curled in close on his own, tangling their legs and nuzzling Kuroo’s neck, licking his gland so his refreshed scent filled his lungs.

Kenma’s heat lasted a little over a week and then faded healthily, leaving a glowing and pleased omega, but an exhausted though equally glowing alpha. The discussion with Kenma’s parents was less awkward than what might have been expected. They were beside themselves with relief that Kuroo had bonded with him instead of anyone else, and the only response from his own parents were a father’s smile and his mother’s warning, “If you ever hurt that boy I’ll come after you myself. You’re a member of my pack first, you hear me?”

Kuroo only grinned and sauntered out of the house to go on a date in the city center. Kenma was waiting for him on the steps outside their houses, playing his handheld while the neighborhood stray slumbered by his hip. Kuroo stood next to him, waiting patiently for him to finish the level and then held out his hand. “Handsies?”

“Don’t be clingy,” Kenma murmured, stuffing the game into his bag and leading the way to the station.

They were intercepted by Bokuto and Akaashi making their way into town as well, the former flipping a coin and lamenting loudly. “NO! Not heads. I don’t want to have to pay…”

“I’ll take an extra egg in my udon, thanks,” Akaashi declared, quite pleased before his eyes widened at the new scent of Nekoma’s captain. “Well okay, then.”

“OHOHOHO!” Bokuto beamed but then saw his opportunity. “Kuroo, you’re a kept man. Do you have any yen you can spare?”

“Not on you,” he snickered. Kenma followed behind them until Kuroo drew him forward to walk between himself and Bokuto, who was desperately trying to convince Akaashi to toss the coin again.

"That's not how it works, baka," he returned, but Kenma guffawed, surprising them all.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm trying something a little different with my writing but I hope you still enjoyed it lol
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